Stories of struggle, songs of hope: Postcolonial womanist performance praxis

This interdisciplinary analyzes and articulates the theological claim that performance as praxis, mediated by the religious and political consciousness of African American women, is theological text, a spiritual path, and a methodology for engendering cultural and social transformation. It elucidates the practices and performances that engender a "theological aesthetic of hope."; Chapter One analyzes womanist theology, critical race theories, as well as contributions in the field of postcolonial theory in as far as it relates to the decolonization by women of their minds and bodies.; Chapter Two privileges performance over discourse as it first considers the performance practices of some women of color who are cultural workers. It then moves on to brief discussion on certain feminist theories about mimesis as far as they relate to this dissertation.; Chapter Three is an adaptation auto-ethnography as a means to invite early 21st century performers to tell their own stories of struggle and resistance. It privileges narrative over discourse. Through interviews and where possible in performances, I will consider their lives and cultural productions as theological texts. I will set these performers in conversation with each other in order to make the theological connections more explicit and to lift up the inherent theology in their statements and artistic productions.; In Chapter Four, I will create and perform a piece, which will act as a theological text embodying the practice of "Holy Wholeness." The performance will interrogate or and embody Black feminist thought and womanist theology theory as well as feminist/womanist performance theories and practices. Part four commences with my commentary critically analyzing both the process of development and performance of the work. The commentary examines the major issues in regard to representation in womanist theology and feminist performance practice that informed the creation of the script, production and performance aesthetics.; Part five the Coda, brings us full circle. We once again think about what is at stake particularly for women of the African Diaspora as we look toward widening the understanding of what constitutes spiritual practice, as well as the continuance of artistic productions that create playspace for social transformation.